


Picture

by bigk4062



Series: Inspired By [7]
Category: Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Kaiba needs to sleep more, M/M, Overthinking, Worry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-26
Updated: 2020-09-01
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:26:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,680
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26124199
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bigk4062/pseuds/bigk4062
Summary: They say a picture's worth a thousand words, too bad sometimes they're wrong.
Relationships: Jounouchi Katsuya | Joey Wheeler/Kaiba Seto
Series: Inspired By [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1390405
Comments: 9
Kudos: 20





	1. Chapter 1

Kaiba sat at his desk, staring at the screen in front of him. Usually, a story about Yugi winning yet another tournament would set his blood boiling, but today he was focused on something else entirely. The American tournament had been a big success, the final battle coming down to a battle between Yugi and Joey, with the King managing to pull out yet another epic win.

As this was a special edition of _Games Monthly_ , the whole tournament had been captured in glossy professional pictures. The biggest was Yugi, holding up his 1st place trophy, Joey on one side holding up his 2nd, and Mai on his other holding up her 3rd.

When Joey had first mentioned going for this tournament, Kaiba had agreed quickly. Joey hadn’t participated in anything Duel Monsters related for a while, wanting to enjoy their honeymoon phase. Kaiba had left information about several tournaments on Joey’s dresser, pushing Yugi to suggest some as well. Kaiba hadn’t even thought about checking the registration, until Joey had bounced into the room announcing jokingly that it was going to be a Duelist Kingdom rematch tournament.

Knowing that Mai was going to be there had caused him to have trouble sleeping during the last few weeks before the tournament. Once Joey had left it was even worse, the brunet burying himself in work business to avoid going home to the quiet. He hadn’t slept at all the past 3 days- ever since Joey had called him to tell him that he was dueling Mai in the semi-finals.

Kaiba clicked on the next page, which was a Q and A with the top 3, Yugi once again in the middle of the other two. Someone had clearly done their homework- there was questions about past tournaments, and they had even including a picture from Battle City of Joey and Yugi jumping up to protect Mai. There was a bunch of questions about their friendship- how they managed to stay close when constantly being in tournaments together, and how they supported each other.

More pictures, individual this time, one of each of them with their trademark cards, smiling at the camera. Another set with Yugi standing awkwardly, even after all this time still embarrassed with the attention he got after winning. Mai, with her arms crossed in front of her chest and eyebrow cocked smugly. Joey, with his trademark cheeky grin, holding his left hand out, showing off his wedding band.

Kaiba’s eyes went to his own, tapping it nervously on the desk. Joey was due back in a few days, having decided to stay and visit with Tea before coming home. He wondered if she was there, lurking like she always seemed to do.

Scrolling back up, he stared at the picture of Mai. Approaching 30 had made her even more of a knock-out, the harsh lines that had defined her face during their early tournament days softening slightly making her look approachable and friendly.

Originally, he had not been worried at the blonde- she was a nuisance, a crush from the past that Joey had long since claimed about being over. However, recently things had changed. Kaiba had been suffering through a bout of insomnia, often getting up and sitting in a chair, watching as his husband slept away. Joey had always been a talker, even in his sleep, but recently his talking had been more and more about the blonde woman, grabbing at his pillow and pulling it close while he whispered her name. If Kaiba could cry, he would over the speculations running around in his head.

Instead, he swallowed down his worry, leaving it in the pit of his stomach. He was a fool to think that marriage would keep Joey with him. While the two of them had smoothed over many of the differences that they had in High School, they were two completely different people. Joey should be with someone like Mai, who could settle down with him and give him a family to fawn over.

Kaiba looked at the comments sections, people giggling over Yugi, crying because Joey was off the market, and men offering marriage to Mai among other things. Those notes tightened his resolve. Mai was nothing more than a nuisance, a competitor that should be stomped out quickly and quietly. She would be fine; she had her choice of any warm-blooded male on the street if she needed a companion.

Joey had agreed to be his, and he had agreed to be Joey’s. While he could never admit it to anyone, the only thing worse to him than the blond leaving was Mokuba, and that was by a surprisingly small margin.

Tapping his ring on the desk, he looked over the pictures again. Grabbing his phone, he called Joey, frowning as it went straight to voicemail. Flicking his eyes over to the screen, he did the math, slower than normal due to his lack of sleep, and realized that it was 2AM over in New York.

Setting down his phone, he frowned again. Pegasus flew Yugi’s whole gang over to America, along with several other competitors on his private jet, much to Kaiba’s chagrin. He preferred them to use his own air fleet, mostly so he could make sure nothing bad happened. No matter what Pegasus said, Kaiba was never going to believe that the other man was ‘just trying to help.’

Picking up his phone again, he dialed Joey’s number, listening to his husband’s voice before leaving him a brief message and hanging up, burying his face in his hands, and letting a not-tear slide out


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kaiba's lack of sleep starts to take it's toll

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What can I say, it's been a slow week at work... anyway the drama continues. And thanks to Sentiment_for_Lost_Creatures, Elexica, Felidae5, ZokuRumba, talyag, and Tsumikara and my guest for leaving Kudos!

Kaiba’s head jerked up, blinking away the sleep. He stood, stretching his back, and wincing as it popped. Limping slightly, he made his way over to the window and looked out over Domino. He was in a daze, not sure exactly what was going on. Running his hand over his face, he was surprised to feel stubble on it. His eyes felt dried out, and there was a nasty taste in his mouth. His clothes were rumbled and smelled funny, and he realized that he had been wearing them for a while.   
Looking back at his computer, he blinked, seeing the stacks of papers that were all over the place. He didn’t remember pulling them out at all. He stumbled back to his desk, picking up a few pieces but not being able to read them. Picking up his phone, he realized that someone was trying to get in touch with him, but he couldn’t place the name.   
Stumbling out of his office, he walked past Cynthia, who watched him with concern. “Mr. Kaiba?” She questioned, getting up to grab him as he stumbled. “I thought you left hours ago… weren’t you supposed to pick Joey up from the Airport this afternoon?” She asked, shaking Kaiba a tad.   
“Joey?” He questioned, and she nodded.   
“Have you slept at all the past few days?” She asked, leading her confused boss to a chair before handing him a glass of water. Kaiba nodded, even though he couldn’t remember if he had slept at all. Cynthia grabbed her phone, calling Roland directly, the bodyguard promising to come right up. Cynthia then dialed Joey, hoping that the blond wasn’t wandering around the airport terminal waiting for his husband.   
Leaving a brief voicemail, she hung up, turning back to her boss. Kaiba was shaking slightly, rubbing his arms trying to warm up. Cynthia walked into his office, grabbing his Battle City coat. Draping it over his legs, she picked up the glass that her boss had dropped on the floor. Looking towards Mokuba’s office, she bit her bottom lip.   
The VP had just gotten back last night from a conference, and he had back-to-back meetings on his schedule today. While Cynthia knew that he would stop everything in a heartbeat for his brother, she didn’t want to panic him either. Luckily, Roland appeared just then, crouching down in front of his boss and frowning.   
“I need to get him home. I already sent Mokuba a message, so he knows what’s going on.” Cynthia nodded, relieved. She trusted Roland with knowing how best to deal with both brothers.   
“Do you need help getting him downstairs?” She questioned and Roland shook his head.   
“I have a guard blocking the back exit and the cars right there. Don’t need anyone questioning why he needs help getting outside.” Cynthia nodded, tapping Kaiba on the shoulder gently before smiling at Roland.   
The two men left, and she went back to work, clearing out the brunet’s schedule for the next two days. Shortly afterwards, Mokuba came out, clearly upset. “What’s going on with my brother?” he questioned worriedly, and Cynthia shook her head.   
“I think he stayed here working all weekend and is exhausted.” She said, smiling reassuringly at the VP.   
“Cynthia…” Mokuba growling, giving her his own fluffy haired version of the Kaiba glare.   
“I can only do so much Mokuba. If he refuses to go home, I certainly do not have the power to make him.” She reminded her other boss, causing the raven-haired man to sigh.   
“I know Cynthia. I can’t help that I had to leave town at the same time Joey did either.”   
“Well, I peeked in your brother’s office and its pretty messy. I didn’t want to touch anything. I don’t know if you want to check to make sure there isn’t any dire needs to be addressed by somebody in the next day or so.” Mokuba nodded, rubbing his own face tiredly.   
“Thanks Cynthia. I’ll get that straightened out, can you call Roland and see how my brother is doing?” Cynthia nodded, going back to her desk when she thought of something.   
“Hey Mokuba, do you know if Joey made it home ok?”   
“Joey’s at Duelist Kingdom. Pegasus wanted to discuss the next tournament with him and Yugi. He’s supposed to be back on Wednesday.” Mokuba said before disappearing into his brother’s office. Cynthia nodded, relieved. She texted Joey, telling him to let her know what his plans were before getting back to work rearranging her boss’s schedule.  
X  
Kaiba woke up later that night, his head still spinning. Reaching for his phone, he turned it on, waiting for several minutes for the beeping to stop. He needed to see something, vague memories of hacking into Joey’s cloud when the blond hadn’t answered him were dancing in his subconscious, and he wondered if his memory was faulty. Pulling up his personal email and sure enough it was there. A slightly fuzzy picture, but one from Mai to Joey of the woman holding a pregnancy test.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kaiba puts his 'brilliant' plan into action.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks Tsumikara for bookmarking and Felidae5 for commenting on Kaiba's mental state... I think you summed it up well! Thanks to dsr5117 for kudos as well! The song mentioned briefly is by

Joey snuck into the mansion, toeing his shoes off at the door. Reception on Pegasus Island was shoddy at best, but someone Roland had managed to get a message to Kemo about Kaiba. Pegasus had immediately offered to fly both the boys’ home, positively giddy about the thought of Kaiba laying in bed sick over missing his husband.

Joey wasn’t sure if he should be creeped out or not over the way the Duel Monster’s creator pranced around his castle imitating a love-stricken Kaiba-Boy. Yugi had doubled over in laughter as soon as their plane left, wiping tears from his face as Joey buried his face in his hands. He had to threaten Yugi to get the shorter male to stop, but from the look on his best friend’s face every time his phone went off, Joey had a sneaking suspicion that Pegasus had been egging the man on.

There were few times in his life when Joey had been glad to say good-bye to his friend but watching Yugi enter the Game Shop after Roland picked them up from the airport caused him to breathe a sigh of relief.

Now he was finally home, yawning as he walked up the stairs. Ranking in tournaments was fun, but the behind-the-scenes stuff was exhausting. There was another interview set up for next week, another paper wanting to find some big scoop before the next tournament. Joey shook his head, clearing his mind.

Roland had told him Kaiba was upstairs resting, and the blond wanted to focus on his husband. Pausing outside their door, Joey took a deep breath, pushing it open and peering inside. Kaiba wasn’t there. Frowning, Joey checked the bathroom even though he knew where Kaiba was. Back in his office, working himself to death.

Fuming, Joey turned to march into his husband’s home office, but stopped himself. Kaiba would have been told Joey was on his way and was probably trying to wrap up some business he was working on. Joey would take a quick shower and change, then go grab his husband and drag him into their bed, kicking and screaming if he had too.

X

Half hour later, Joey stood outside Kaiba’s door, flabbergasted. As he had approached the door, a sultry giggle came from inside, making him pause. He had heard that same laugh a hundred times before, mostly at bars right before she drew in her prey. His brain short-circuited when he heard it again, and there was no mistaking it.

Finally, he was able to grab the door knob and he opened it, blinking in surprise at the scene in front of him. Kaiba was typing away at his laptop, looking like he was about to fall over. Behind him was Mai, her blond hair askew, rubbing his shoulders. Both looked up when he entered, tripping over a discarded suit jacket as he made his way over to them.

X

Mai sighed as she looked up at Kaiba Mansion. She had been scheduled for a meeting the day before with both brothers for some sort of contract negotiation, but Mokuba had called to cancel it, telling her they would send her the paperwork to sign. Not five minutes later Kaiba had called, gruffly asking her to come to the mansion the following morning to go over things with her. She had been ready to refuse, but the CEO had sounded so strange that she found herself agreeing, slightly concerned about him. She may not like Kaiba all the time, but he was Joey’s husband, and being Joey’s friend meant she had to at least try to get along with him.

Knocking, she smiled at the maid who escorted her inside. The older woman nodded back, looking Mai over appraisingly before nodding. “If you would follow me Ms. Valentine.” She said after Mai took off her shoes. Mai did so, finding herself gaping yet again over the size of the mansion. Finally, the maid stopped in front of a door, knocking twice before opening it and escorting her in.

“Mr. Kaiba will be with you in a moment. Please, make yourself at home.” She said, bowing slightly before leaving, Mai’s ‘Thank You’ said to her back. The blonde sat down, adjusting herself in the chair. Minutes ticked by, and she stared out the window, admiring the view. Kaiba’s office was directly over the gardens, which were bursting with color this time of year.

Idlily, she wondered if he ever took time to enjoy the view, standing up and walking to the window, watching as a group of birds danced around the feeders.

“Enjoying yourself?” Kaiba asked suddenly, causing her to jump. Looking back over her shoulder, she saw the CEO sitting at his desk, leaning back in his chair as he stared at her.

“Hello, Kaiba.” She said, walking back to her seat. She appraised Kaiba critically, taking in the exhausted look on the man’s face. Kaiba was blinking slowly, looking like he was about to pass out, eyes rolling in the back of his head. “Are you alright?” She questioned, leaning forward in concern. No answer, and she opened her mouth to ask again.

“I’m fine.” Kaiba said unconvincingly, causing her to frown.

“Kaiba.”

“Have a seat. We need to talk.” Kaiba said, gesturing towards her. Mai blinked from the chair, looking down at herself. The brunet blinked at her several times before leaning back, reaching for a folder on the floor and almost sliding out of his chair.

“Kaiba?’ Mai questioned, half standing to help the CEO. “I have something to show you.” He stated, holding a folder. Mai waited, expecting him to pull out papers. When nothing happened she frowned again, leaning forward to tap the desk lightly, hoping to knock him out of his stupor. Growing concerned, she tried again, jumping when the brunet grabbed her hand.

“It’s going to look so good, you know that?” He whispered, squeezing her hand gently.

“Yes it is. You always know how to give the people what they want Kaiba.” She said, assuming he was talking about the tournament. Kaiba laughed at that, gripping her hand tightly.

“I’ve given them everything, and they still leave. What more can I do?” Mai frowned, attempted to pull her hand away before he crusted it. Kaiba noticed what she was doing and let go, muttering apologies under his breath. Mai rubbed her wrist, growing concerned about the mental health of the man in front of her.

“Is there something you need to talk about Kaiba?” She asked, quietly appraising him. Kaiba blinked again, looking down at the folder in his hand.

“Why did I ask you here?” He muttered, more to himself than anything, opening the folder and staring at it. “I should have you killed.” He stated matter-of-factly, causing Mai to freeze. The brunet laughed, pulling out a couple of pictures and dumping them on the desk. Mai picked one up, blinking at the in confusion. It was some couple in an intimate embrace, backs towards the camera.

“You’re screwing my husband.” Kaiba stated, looking at Mai. She arched an eyebrow at him, looking back down at the picture.

“That’s not us Kaiba. In fact, they look almost nothing like us.” Kaiba snatched the picture away, looking at it. He dumped another picture in front of her, this time of the gang at the park.

“I’m not even in that one.” She said, furrowing her brow. The last picture was from the photo shoot they had done, Joey, Mai, and Yugi all grinning for the camera.

“I don’t understand Kaiba….” Mai let her voice trail off, looking down at the ‘evidence’ in her hands.

“Of course you don’t. Women like you never do.” Kaiba hissed, leaning forward to stare her down… only to shift his weight too much and slam his head on the desk. He laid there for a moment, limp, while Mai watched him

“Kaiba, clearly you are exhausted. Let’s continue this discussion another time.” Mai said, standing up to go.

“Sit down.” Kaiba said, his head still on the desk. Mai did so, flipping her hair over her shoulder to pretend she wasn’t bothered by him. Kaiba sat back up, fumbling for his folder and pulling something out. It was her, holding the pregnancy test, a big smile on her face. “You could have anyone you wanted. All these men, and you want the one I have.” Kaiba pulled out a small stack of papers, plopping them down on the desk. “You gave him the one thing I couldn’t, and I’ll be damned if you use it to take him. Sign this.”

Mai reached for the pen, then stopped. “I don’t know what you think is going on here Kaiba, but I can explain.”

“I don’t want to hear it.” Kaiba snapped, tapping the pen in irritation. “Now, either sign this, or get out.”

“Fine.” Mai said breeziliy, standing up and heading towards the door. Kaiba lunged at her, grabbing her suit jacket, managing to pull it off her as he fell to the floor. Mai watched him for a second, debating on whether to make a run for it. Sighing, she knelt, offering Kaiba her arm. Ushering the CEO back to his chair, she got settled, running her fingers through his hair. Kaiba’s eyelids drooped, and he snored for a second before jerking his head up. Mai continued to stroke his hair, hoping to soothe him so she could get out.

“I don’t want to lose him.” Kaiba mumbled, and Mai hushed him, rubbing her thumbs in circles on his back.

“Kaiba, you’re not losing him. I’m not pregnant, there is no affair.” He mumbled again, and she leaned forward, trying to understand. Hearing faint mumblings about boobs and impressive she giggled, covering her mouth with her hand. “Seto Kaiba, are you hitting on me?” She questioned, eyes lighting up with laughter.

“What if I am?” He asked, closing his eyes.

“I’d say you’re crazy.” She giggled again, rubbing his shoulders. He was almost asleep when the door opened, causing his head to snap up, both watching Joey tripping over her suit jacket in surprise at what was going on.

Mai tapped her finger to her lips and shook her head, causing the blond to be silent. Kaiba for his part moaned, placing his head back on the desk.

“Tell him to go away.” He muttered, and Mai tsked, listening as Kaiba’s breath evened out and he went to sleep. She slipped the folder away from him, grabbing the pictures off the desk as well before motioning Joey to meet her outside. He walked out, carrying her suit jacket. Mai patted Kaiba’s shoulder before leaving as well.

“Do you want to explain why you were putting the moves on my husband?” Joey questioned, trying not to laugh at his friend. Mai handed him the folder as well as the pictures and he flipped through, confused.

“Apparently I’m pregnant with your love child. Congrats on being a daddy!” Joey blinked, looking at her flabbergasted.

“How did he…?”

“He hacked your phone while we were at the tournament. He’s sleep-deprived and not thinking very clearly so please go easy on him.” Mai said, patting Joey’s shoulder.

“I’m going to kill him.” Joey muttered, glaring at the door.

“Let him sleep, there’s plenty of time to murder him later.” Mai said, linking her arm through Joey’s.

“I swear, if I didn’t love him, I’d let him think we were sleeping together.” Joey said, leaning his head on her shoulder.

“I mean, I have some perfume in my car if you want to go spray it around a guest room or something.” Joey laughed, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

X

The next morning, Kaiba opened his eyes slowly. He was laying on his back, in his bed, the sun drifting in through the curtains. Yawning, he slowly sat up in bed. Or a least he tried too. Instead he was pinned in by the sheets.

Frowning, he managed to yank them up, struggling to get out of bed. Going into the bathroom, he washed his face, trying to shake the sleep. Really, all he wanted to do was crawl back into bed and fall asleep, but there was work to do.

He fumbled down the stairs, passed Joey and Mai at the kitchen island, and walked directly over to the coffee. Taking a few sips, he sighed, taking a few deep breaths while inhaling the scent of caffeine. Suddenly, his mind switched on, and he turned, looking flabbergast at Joey and Mai sitting next to each other.

“Morning husband.” Joey greeted him, and Mai just cheekily smiled.

“What is she doing here?” Kaiba asked, looking over at the two scheming blonds.

“You asked her to move in with us yesterday. Don’t you remember?” Joey asked innocently, giving Mai a quick hug.

“I’ve got to tell you, having my husband and lover under one roof just takes a load off my mind.” He continued, pretending not to notice as Kaiba’s face got redder and redder.

“Mine too. It’s going to be so nice when the baby comes to have us all living together.” Mai agreed, placing her head on Joey’s shoulder, grazing her lips on his cheek. Kaiba stared in shock, barely comprehending when his coffee cup broke in his hands and a flash went off in his eyes.

“Ooo, let me see.” Mai giggled, reaching for something in Joey’s hand.

“It’s not ready yet, slow down your horses woman.” Joey said, holding up a polaroid picture. Mai snatched it out of his hands, frowning playfully.

“There’s nothing there yet.”

“You’ve got to give it a minute.” Joey said, grabbing a dish towel and approaching his husband, wiping coffee off his hands while the brunet stood there, still stunned.

“Um, Joey? I think we broke your husband.” Mai said, watching as Kaiba’s mouth opened and shut repeatedly.

“Probably. He deserves it though.” Joey replied, trying to wipe some of the coffee off the floor. When he was done, he dropped the towel in the sink, then turned toward the brunet. Kaiba’s face was slowly gaining back it’s color, even though he still had a shocked look. Joey guided him to the island, letting him lean against the counter space for support.

“How’s the picture look?”

“Great, actually.” Mai said, handing it over. Joey appraised it for a moment before handing it to Kaiba. The brunet took in his pale face and wide, shocked eyes and frowned.

“I think I’m going to get this framed. That way, next time you decided to be a jerk, I can just point to it and laugh.” Joey said, pulling away from his husband. Kaiba stood up straight, his mind finally processing what was going on.

“You’re not pregnant.” He stated flatly to Mai, who shook her head. “You’re not sleeping together.” Again, another head shake.

“Mai’s been going through some personal stuff lately, and we’ve been talking a lot. That’s it.” Joey said, tapping on the folder. “If you would have just asked me, instead of burying yourself in your own personal crazy town, you would know that.” He finished, folding his arms and staring at his husband.

“Well, now that the fun is over, I should go.” Mai said, kissing Joey on the cheek. “Thanks for the place to stay last night Joey, I appreciate it.”

“Are you going to be ok?” Joey asked, turning his attention to the blonde.

“Yea, I’m actually going to go see your sister for a few days, then there’s another tournament next week I’m in. I’ll talk to you soon ok?” Joey nodded, giving his friend a hug.

“Call me when you get to Ren’s.” Mai nodded, looking over at the brunet who was glaring at her.

“I signed that contract and left it on your desk Kaiba. If you need anything else from me, have Joey or Mokuba call.” She said, grabbing her phone and gliding out of the room, humming a song that sounded suspiciously like ‘Secret Lovers’ under her breath.

“I should put you on the couch for a month.” Joey said icily, looking at his husband. “You need to get over yourself. If you ever pull a stunt like this again, I will leave you.” Kaiba nodded, looking away. Joey soften for a second, holding out a hand for his husband. Kaiba walked over, leaning down to kiss him on the lips, trying to snatch the picture away while the blond was distracted. Joey snatched it, shoving it under his shirt.

“I’m going to Yug’s. Try to behave at work today.” Joey said, kissing him again before leaving himself. Kaiba sighed, alone again. He poured another cup of coffee, looking back over the folder. Now that he had slept for a whole night, his mind was clearer, and he could see how crazy he had gotten over nothing. Snorting in disgust at himself, he tossed the whole thing in the trash, starting to walk away before pausing. Digging in the trash, he pulled out the picture of Mai holding the pregnancy test. This one he would keep, to remind himself of what happens when he let’s his demons get the best of him. Kaiba tucked it in his pocket, picking up his coffee and leaving the kitchen, along with the thought of Joey and Mai, behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One day I'm going to have Joey leave Kaiba for Mai... either that or the two blond's seduce him into a threesome. Something will happen.

**Author's Note:**

> I was kind of inspired by Dolly Parton's Jolene to write this. Just a note, Kaiba's imagination is running away with him. There is no reason for him to feel like this, man just needs some sleep.


End file.
